Ipswich: Charity worker hits out at new ‘ice rink’ Tower Ramparts bus station after girlfriend injured in fall

Jason King, 32, fears the newly-refurbished bus depot is a safety hazard that is particularly dangerous for elderly people after his partner Serena McCarry, 19, fell and bruised her knee at the town centre site.

Jason King, 32, fears the newly-refurbished bus depot is a safety hazard that is particularly dangerous for elderly people after his partner Serena McCarry, 19, fell and bruised her knee at the town centre site.

Suffolk County Council (SCC), which oversaw the recent renovation of the station, has instructed the contractor responsible to address the issue as a matter of urgency, adding warning signs have now been put up.

Mr King, a volunteer at Age UK Suffolk, said his girlfriend’s knee turned black with severe bruising after falling on a slippery walking path across the road in between bus stops on Saturday. The station closed in September as part of SCC’s £21million Travel Ipswich project and reopened on November 16.

Mr King, of Canterbury Close, said: “It’s like an ice rink. There could be a serious accident. It’s a safety hazard and especially dangerous to old people who will be more vulnerable to the slippery surface, which is my main concern.

“They should have made it much more safe, and done a better job with the surface work, especially after all the money they spent on it. It is not good enough.”

A SCC spokesman declined to confirm how much money was spent on the Tower Ramparts refurbishment works as part of the £21m Travel Ipswich project.

However it is understood that the authority submitted £1.5m of expected costs to the Department of Transport and did not exceed that amount.

In a statement, the spokesman said: ”We are aware of some issues with the road surface on the bus lanes at Tower Ramparts bus station, and have instructed the contractor responsible to address the issue as a matter of urgency at no extra cost to the council.

“In the meantime, we have commissioned signs to warn those using the area and will continue to monitor the situation.”

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How much longer do they council need to wait before an elderly member of the public slips and seriously injures themselves? If a young, fit and healthy individual has serious knee injuries, then imagine the damage to the elderly...they don't necessarily have the same reaction times as a young person...so there could be broken hips, severe head injuries etc...as I said. How long do they council have to wait before someone sues them for negligence? Completely ridiculous.

I am pleased I have read these posts-and will be careful when walking around the bus station in future. I seem to remember IBC having to replace the kerb stones when they revamped around Giles Statue as the stones were the same colour as the road and many people fell over there, but they did solve the hazard very quickly.... Do the Council ever learn, when will they think more of safety first ?

let me get this right... he is 32, and she is 19... a bit young for him. he is unemployed (a volunteer). probably forced to work a few hours per week to keep his dole money. Oh and its a bus station not a bus depot.

Brad26. I don't see how it is a bad thing to bring to the attention of the media the poor roadpavement surface. They are not asking for compensation but perhaps they felt that the council were not taking it seriously enough. How bad would you feel if an old person fell over and broke something because you did not do your best to get the information out there?

Getting fed up of these stories both locally and nationally. People need to take responsibility for their own actions and stop moaning. Your Girlfriend had an unfortunate slip and hurt herself. Deal with it, stop looking for others to blame. Its all its ever about these days is finding someone else to blame your problems on.

Marcus- once Iceland have finished their building work I believe the plan is to go in and add seats and shelters for the remaining stops. The building work planned when the station re-opened prevented it from being done before.

This pavement is awful, I slipped on this on the way to work on New Year's Eve , and I'm still off work. I have been in and out of hospital since I slipped on this and I'm currently waiting to see a knee specialist due to my damage ligaments in my knee in the fall. Something needs to be done!

@Brad26: Those concrete slabs they used in the new bus station are very slick when they are wet. Wait until the snow comes. It is the responsibility of the council to ensure that the area is safe. I don't think this guy is blaming anyone, he is pointing out a very legitimate concern.
Not only that, I'm also angry that when they didn't replace the bicycle rack they removed for the refurbish.

Its ok everyone problem solved... Put up signs!!
I get the feeling this may be a common theme with travel Ipswich with signs reading.. "Welcome to Ipswich.. Its probably best to leave your car here and walk"